Thank you. Chairman, honourable members, ladies and gentlemen and ambassador, it is a privilege for me to be here speaking to the committee about the European future of my country. The recognition of Georgia’s European perspective in June 2022 created a unique opportunity for us and opened up an entirely new chapter in our relationship with the European Union. It has brought to fruition the long-standing aspiration and civilisational choice of Georgia. It is the choice which is underpinned by the shared European values and principles, and the choice which we have been fighting for and continue to defend. I express our sincere appreciation for the support Ireland has rendered throughout this process. The ever-strong partnership, which we enjoy with the EU is a gain that has been achieved through our joint efforts and it is only through joint efforts that we can succeed further on this path. While Georgia is committed to EU accession, Ireland's example serves as an inspiration for us. The success story that has tremendously benefited from EU membership encouraged Georgia to move forward. Ireland can rely on Georgia as a strategic asset, to further promote the shared European values and interests, and play an important role in supporting peace and stability in the region and beyond.
We already have many success stories to be proud of and Georgia gained deserved benefits. The far-reaching association agreement, the deep and comprehensive free trade area, DCFTA, the visa free travel, a strong security partnership and enhanced trade relations, advanced co-operation in various sectors are most vivid examples. However, to come this far has never been easy. The Russian military presence on Georgian soil continues several kilometres from the capital. Barbed wire and fences in the heart of Georgia are constant reminders of occupation. Kidnapping of our citizens by the occupation forces is a daily occurrence, while Georgia remains a testing ground for Russian disinformation and hybrid warfare. Russia has been methodically and step-by-step intensifying the incorporation of Georgia’s occupied regions into political, military, social, economic, and other systems of the Russian Federation. Statements regarding the establishment of Russia’s permanent naval base in the occupied Abkhazia region further confirms the fact Georgia is increasingly vulnerable and facing high risks for escalation. It is more than evident that Russia uses the occupation of Georgia’s regions and these provocations as hybrid tools to destabilise the situation in my country and put political pressure on the Government of Georgia. We are targeted precisely because of our choice to be part of the Euro-Atlantic family. Two days before the enlargement package of the European Commission was published, which gave the green light to granting Georgia candidate status, a Georgian citizen, Tamaz Ginturi, was murdered by the Russian occupation forces. This fact speaks for itself. Despite this, we stand firm and resolved on our path to become a full-fledged member of the European Union. In this challenging environment, we understand that it will be a long journey, a journey we will take together until the ultimate goal of membership has been achieved.
This is a watershed moment for Georgia. We are just a couple of weeks away from the EU leaders’ major gathering that is going to adopt strategic decisions for our states, but also for the EU itself. The EU’s enlargement policy has always been a geopolitical tool generating momentum for closer engagement with the union’s partners. It continues to serve as an investment in peace, stability and prosperity on the whole Continent of Europe. We welcome the Commission’s recommendation to the European Council to grant Georgia candidate status. This is a clear recognition of the very intensive work done by Georgia, its Government and all state structures that were engaged in delivering on major reforms and legislative approximation with the EU acquis. We very much rely on and expect the EU leaders to support this recommendation. The European Council’s decision to grant Georgia candidate status will pave the way towards the accession talks and in this way anchor Georgia’s future firmly with the EU. This is a historical chance and missing it could be damaging for us and for a Europe whole, free and at peace. We are a European nation. Our place is in the European Union and we will strengthen the Union by contributing to its diversity. There is no doubt that the EU membership comes with long-term commitments and responsibilities. Let me assure the committee that we are not looking for any shortcuts; we never have. The Government of Georgia remains fully mobilised and resolved to continue and further accelerate the reforms in order to live up to our commitments on the path of EU accession.
We have proved our commitment and demonstrated the strongest will to continue key reforms many times, including those envisaged in the 12 priorities. The Commission report published on 8 November recounts the progress delivered by Georgia in detail.
Immediately after the publication of the enlargement package, we developed an action plan on addressing the new priorities defined by the Commission, which was approved by the State Commission of Georgia on EU Integration on 27 November. The plan envisages actions to fight disinformation through strengthening the strategic and institutional framework, intensive awareness raising and international co-operation; creating working groups involving all parliamentary political parties and non-governmental organisations to discuss and take forward our European integration agenda and the fundamental reforms; and reaffirming commitment to continue active co-operation with the EU in the Common Foreign and Security Policy, CFSP, area, including continuing Georgia’s proactive co-operation on sanctions.
We shared the action plan with the European Commission and our partners in the EU member states. We stay committed to continuing intensive consultations with our EU colleagues on advancing Georgia’s EU membership process based on the very good track record of such co-operation we have developed throughout the past months.
This brings me to the issue of progressive or gradual integration, which is being discussed in the enlargement context. Georgia supports any initiative that can help us progress towards full-fledged membership of the EU. Given the lengthy and complex path of membership, which needs all our time and resources, the EU accession process should be supported by concrete prospects of integration into an array of EU policies, primarily the EU Single Market. This has been a driver for Georgia since the conclusion of the association agreement and the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement, DCFTA. We also took note of the growth plan proposed to the western Balkans. We should not wait for some time before applying the same approach to our states. On the contrary, we need to learn lessons from the western Balkans experience and support the lengthy and costly reforms through concrete benefits that pay back on steady popular support.
Speaking about Georgia, we have prioritised enhanced participation in the EU framework programmes and engagement with the specialised agencies as this is one of the most effective ways to learn, and pursue at the same time, legal and institutional convergence with the EU standards. Georgia is already actively involved in several programmes and agencies such as Horizon Europe, Creative Europe, customs programmes and Fiscalis, Europol, Eurojust, Frontex and CEPOL. Furthermore, we have applied to upgrade our status in Erasmus+, negotiate our participation in the Single Market programme and conclude an administrative arrangement with the European Defence Agency.
In addition, convergence with EU sectorial policies through joining different policy mechanisms is an effective way to prepare a country for the membership obligations in certain fields. With this in mind, we have applied to join the single euro payments area, common roaming area and Union civil protection mechanism, as well as launching consultations on the recognition of the authorised economic operator programmes. We rely on the support of the EU institutions and member states to grant Georgia access to various EU sectorial policies as a step towards deeper economic and sectorial integration with the EU.
We are living through extremely turbulent times. The entire world order and international security architecture are being reshaped. The European Union is at a critical juncture in the context of reshuffling its role as a global actor. In our heavily contested and fragile region, we continue to strengthen Georgia’s role as a stronghold of regional peace and stability, democratic development and co-operation, a crucial link on the global connectivity map offering alternative routes for energy and freight transportation and trade in the Black Sea and eastern partnership region.
To facilitate regional co-operation, we continue intensive engagement with our partners, Armenia and Azerbaijan, and we have made concrete steps to facilitate dialogue and functional communication between them, which complements the efforts of the EU. On 26 and 27 October, the Georgian Prime Minister hosted the Armenian and Azerbaijani Prime Ministers on the margins of the Tbilisi Silk Road forum. All sides stressed the crucial importance of peace and stability in the region, which is achieved solely through dialogue, joint projects and co-operation. I must also recall the peaceful neighbourhood initiative proposed by Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili, which envisages full and equal participation of the three countries of the South Caucasus and stands to play a key role in normalisation of relations.
These efforts also go hand in hand with our common interest to exploit the untapped potential of international trade and alternative routes of energy and freight transportation in the Black Sea. Georgia is a crucial partner of the EU when it comes to materialisation of the strategic initiatives spelled out in the EU’s global gateway. We are confident that Georgia’s initiatives, such as the Black Sea submarine electricity cable and the fibre-optic cable, as well as the intensified ferry feeder services in the Black Sea, can offer effective solutions to ensuring energy independence and security, food security and reliable alternative transportation routes. To this end, we are resolved to accelerate the implementation of these initiatives and look forward to close partnership with our European Union partners and European financial institutions. We are confident that Georgia, as a future member state, stands to play a key role in the common good of Europe. I thank members very much.
